Taken very literally "holistic spiritualism" is relating the parts to the whole of matters dealing with the spirit. This defination will change slightly depending on which portion of the individual definitions of "holistic" and "spiritualism" you use.

Spiritualism exists everywhere in some form. Religions rely on spiritualism to teach about faith and such. But spiritualism also lies outside the realm of religion in references such as the American spirit or spirit of kindness.

I think of spiritualism as a personal journey of discovery. So, "holistic spirituality" to me is a study and adaptation of many sources discovered on ones personal journey to find truth.

Spiritualism exists everywhere in some form. Religions rely on spiritualism to teach about faith and such. But spiritualism also lies outside the realm of religion.
I think of spiritualism as a personal journey of discovery. So, "holistic spirituality" to me is a study and adaptation of many sources discovered on ones personal journey to find truth.[/QUOTE]

I agree with yr short but very apt meaning of 'holistic spirituality'. It has to be personal, without the shackles of any particular religion and with yr own understanding about why you are here and where you want to be. But this is practical only for those who have seen the world and are not very much bound by day to day duties and responsibilities for others. It does not mean that they do nat participate but they have done their bit and continue to do essential 'karmas' as dictated by their links with families, friends and society.
I very much liked a poem form of presentation given in the book 'You can heal your life' by Louise L Hay. I give below a selected but integrated version below.

In the infinity of life where I am,
All is perfect, whole and complete.
I am always Divinely protected and guided
The past has no power over me
There is no right or wrong, nor good or bad
The past is over and done.
I am willing to learn and to change
It is easier for me to forgive than I thought.
Forgiving makes me feel free and light.
My day begins with gratitude and joy.
I look forward with enthusiasm to the adventures of the day.
I live in harmony and balance with everyone I know.
Deep inside me there is infinite well of love.
The truth of my Being is that I was created
Perfect, whole and complete.
I am one with the power that created me.
I am totally open and receptive to the abundant flow of prosperity
That the universe offers.
All my needs and desires are met before, I even ask.
I am divinely guided and protected,
And I make choices that are beneficial for me.
I rejoice in others’ successes, knowing there is plenty for us all.
My good comes from everywhere and everyone.
All is well in my world.

I am new to the idea of Holistic Spirituality. I have been researching my Faith for several years now from a Sociologist's point of view. I've been asking questions of the older people in my family - not just 'who beget who' but - who were our ancestors? What were their personal stories? What were they thinking? I've taped into the on-line library to gain a fuller understanding of the history of the time - to place myself in their shoes. At times, I felt I was reaching back in time and touching the fingertips of my ancestors. It has been a spiritually uplifting experience. It has freed me to fully experience the harmony of mind, body, and spirit. I feel more in tune with my Creator. I feel an awe inspiring inner peace. This experience did not happen without considerable sacrifice. It was a struggle - sometimes an inner battle - but when I came out on the other side = I never want to go back to the way I was. I hope this will encourage you all to not give up - to paraphrase a quote: We learn more by our struggles than we do our successes.

It would not work as well if we did these things during the day, the best times for me mediate, is sunset, night and ealrly morning.

....Why? Because we are SOOOO individualistic. I am now okay with this. This is one of the reasons that I like coming to BN, because there are more people who are close enough to my beliefs than are not.

Hey Religionfree.

I've read a bunch of your posts in this thread and have to say I agree with a suprising amount of what you post.

I'm coming back to Beliefnet as someone trying to ease off on my hard core atheism.

Currently I'm identifying as someone who is a mix of Animism, Shinto, and maybe some paganism. Not in any concrete belief or dogmatic way, but more in a 'practice' way.

I think there is comfort and fulfillment in ritual, and I want to pursue some of this more.

To be honest, I had never heard of the phrase "Holistic Spirituality" until I joined beliefnet a few days ago. When I joined, I started looking for the community that echoed most closely the path I am on, and this one seems to be it. If I try to reverse engineer that process, I guess I would come up with points like these:

* I do not reject my Christian upbringing, and there are parts of the Christian path that I embrace whole-heartedly. I find that the people here in the Holistic area seem accepting of that approach, not rejecting the past entirely as we move to the future (no throwing the baby out with the bathwater!)

* I want a reasoned yet dynamic approach to spirit. Dogma often gets in the way. The words we find to describe spirit are just pointers and they can change with our current place on the path, without changing what they are pointing at! Many of the posts in the Holistic area could be brought together as an example of how this works. People pointing at the same truth from their unique perspectives, and accepting that a truth can be approached from more than one direction.

* I believe that every person on this planet has something positive that s\he could take away from studying indigenous faiths. Earth-based faiths bring a respect for our planet that is way overdue in western culture. I did not grow up in an indigenous culture, so I can't be authentically indigenous in my outlook - but whatever I can learn helps to bridge the gap between the western culture in which I was raised and the faith of my ancestors. Quite a few of the posts in this area appear to be an outgrowth of exposure to indigenous belief systems.

I guess that is the core of what I saw here. I wonder if you all perceive that I misunderstood this space, or if these points resonate with you as well?